Chillicothe downtown business and building owners gathered at City Hall Monday afternoon to add their input to riverfront development.

Mayor Gary Fyke welcomed the group by saying, “We want to direct our attention to what you people as business men and women would like to see done in town that would benefit your business.”

Tom Tincher, the city’s consultant, explained the work he and the mayor’s riverfront advisory committee had done thus far.

He also explained the ideas he shared recently with the Chillicothe City Council, and the ideas they shared with him.

“It’s just critical at this point to really engage you as downtown representatives as to what you feel makes sense and what variations in terms of plan ought to be considered in order to meet your interest, because that is a primary focus of this overall initiative,” said Tincher.

He discussed groups such as Illinois Central College, the Agency on Aging and Community Ministry Alliance using the proposed retreat center on Chillicothe’s riverfront.

He also discussed the problems on Peoria’s riverfront in relation to businesses.

When an event is put on by the Peoria Park District, festival participants are corralled into a fenced area on the riverfront.

They then, he said, cannot engage the business community in that area, and would not suggest that plan for Chillicothe.

He also showed them alternative maps, the first presented to the council and the second which only requires the acquisition of the Bananas property.

The owners of residences next to Bananas do not want to sell, Tincher said, so the map lists those areas as future park, should the properties come up for sale in the future.

Alternative No. 2 also shows the view to the river blocked on Walnut Street by the three-story hotel/retreat center. Aldermen voiced their concerns about that, and thus, alternative No. 3 shows the hotel between Walnut and Elm streets, with the restaurant at Walnut.

Alternative No. 4 was designed after the economic development committee met recently, Tincher said. They looked at whether a hotel should be built in such a narrow area without additional property available at this point.

The map notes the retreat center/restaurant would be where Bananas is located now.

The hotel, Tincher said, could be built somewhere else in town or when properties became available, build it to the north.

“The question raised to you today is one: How do you become all you can be?” Tincher asked. “And, what is all you can be?”

He said officials need to “beef up” the connection between Fourth Street, the downtown and the riverfront by using Walnut Street as the connecting point. Tincher suggested signage, reinvestment, redevelopment and landscaping to accomplish that task.

“I have been fortunate over the years to work with a number of communities that have the kind of opportunity that you have, but probably didn’t have the attributes that you have. You are so special.”

He noted the historical nature of the downtown buildings, a functional theater, growth corridor in the region, the changing of hourly workers to professional workers at Mossville Caterpillar and possibilities with the Senachwine Creek.

He also gave them a handout on Sullivan’s downtown square and the work there.

An architect worked with the building owners to develop paint, awning and signage themes,
Tincher said, to bring continuity to the downtown. Havana also did the same type of thing and secured a USDA community development grant to help with the expenses.

The city budgeted $3,500 within Tincher’s consulting contract if downtown business owners are interested in the service.

Their say
Judy Gajdik of Printographi Offset Printing asked about the impact of Illinois Route 6 expanding and the state cutting funds to the Agency on Aging.

She also said the city would need more policemen, more code enforcement and needed “to clean up our act.”

Tincher said he thinks the city needs to establish the downtown and get ahead of the game.

The highway could complement the activities at the riverfront, he said.

Caryn Knop of J&J’s Manufacturing asked about where the public boat launches would be.

“We would not lose public ramps,” said the mayor’s riverfront development advisory committee chairman Gary Sutton. “They would be relocated to a place that would better serve their function. Why do they deserve the prime real estate for something that you have trailors, trucks and cars sitting down there viewing the river when we can have people at the river enjoying it?”

Jettia Draper, who owns properties in the area, including a downtown building, said that no one had talked to her about the plan.

“This is our heritage to give to our children,” said Draper. “This river belongs to the town and to the people that have worked hard to keep it that way. And, we would turn it into a town of have and have nots. And I have seen that happen when we have boated.”

Draper also said she had read about downtowns dying even more after riverfront development came through, due to the hotels increasing businesses within it.

They also discussed Tax Increment Financing money, which Burnett said is about $425,000 annually.

Sutton also talked about working through the conceptual plan, identifying problems and finding solutions.

Tincher said a minimal phase one project could be a retreat center/restaurant that would mostly be privately financed.

“I’d like to see the money spent on downtown,” said Greg Owens of Owens Design Group.
“Because the way I see it is, we can build all this, but if our downtown still looks the way it is now, we’re gonna have people coming in and they’re not gonna venture up into that area. They’re gonna be down here where the amphitheater is, the new restaurant, the new hotel.

What is going to attract them to downtown? Now, some of the handouts you have here, Sullivan’s downtown square project, the architectural renderings there, that’s very attractive. If we can get some unity between the owners downtown to all agree on signage, an overall appearance for that downtown area as opposed to at their own discretion, I think that would be a benefit.”

Sutton said one of the reasons for riverfront redevelopment is to bring more people into the downtown.

Sandi Levell of The Hair Company suggested brick sidewalks and trees for the downtown.

She suggested they start with small projects, and Sutton said they needed a plan.
Levell said she agreed, “But, I think it’s overwhelming, and we don’t think it’s gonna get done.”

Burnett also mentioned the budgeted $20,000 for Project Facelift, which grants a specific amount of money for each downtown building owner, depending on its size and type of business, service or retail.

In four months, she said, the money was exhausted. She also added that the council increased the money from the previous year and also increased the amount of money received per lineal foot.

The difference between Project Facelift and the proposed architectural renderings is that instead of each business owner doing what they want to the building, the architect would develop a theme and consensus for the look.

Burnett said the city’s decorative lighting in the area goes down to the riverfront and up through City Park to help connect all the areas.

In addition to the decorative lighting, planters were installed in front of downtown businesses.
Some owners, she said, do not take care of them. They also now have better-looking garbage cans.

“The bottom line question is, is it better to remain as you are today, and not do anything, and let the freeway come around your community and let growth go unconstrained wherever it might go?” said Tincher. “Or is it better for the community to have a plan that says this is where we want to be, this is where we want to go. And then go after means to bring that about.”

With the planning, Tincher said, they also will have some cost estimates, which also allows them to try to secure grants, like some communities have done.

Tincher ended the meeting by saying it sounded like the business owners are interested in the next step of an architect creating renderings.